Tips that Every Teenager Should Know About Saving Money

child savings

It is a child’s dream come true, when each and every wish of it is fulfilled. It certainly takes lot of effort on the part of the parents to earn and save enough money to meet the growing demands of children. However, it is important for children and teenagers to realise the value of money and how they can make the most of their cash gifts and part-time earnings by saving the money for an important occasion or spend.

Children above the age of 11 will be able to open a current account or a child savings account at any bank in the neighbourhood to build on their piggy bank savings. Some form of identification documents will be required to create an account and in thecase of those under 16, parental permission is mandatory. Banks usually offer various means to handle the money in the account such as cash machine cards, account transfers, online banking, cheque books and debit cards.

Opening a bank account is an easy task, especially when done with parents’ help, but where exactly does the money come from? Cash gifts from parents and other relatives, a standard chunk of pocket money to catch up with daily or monthly expenses, and income earned from part-time jobs are the teenager’s main source of cash. How best can one set aside an amount to be saved from this meagre source? Yes it can be done by:

• Getting out of the home with just minimum cash to meet essential expenses. In case there is some extra cash to spare, hang-on to it till the urge for any unnecessary spending is overcome and simply save the money for later use. • Automatically set aside a small portion of the cash earned at each instance, before starting to spend it. Try saving the change and gradually improvise from there. • Taking up a suitable part-time job from a host of options such as newspaper delivery, tending lawns, watching pets and waiting at cafés andrestaurants. • Eating healthy homemade food to actually save a lot by avoiding eating-out. It doesn’t mean that one needs to starve to save money. Do check out the difference it makes though. • Cutting down the time spent on the mobile. If one is on a pay as you go tariff, reducing the minutes and texts sent on a mobile can save a lot on the overall bill.

Why exactly should a teenager save money?

• To manage one’s own needs including mobile phone bills, gifts for friends, an occasional friendly bash and the likes, without burning a hole in parents’ pockets, however small it may be. • To learn knowing and appreciating the value of money in times of need. • To learn controlling temptations and differentiating between absolute necessity and extravagance. • To develop a habit of saving money for the best purposes in life.

Bank accounts are also quite useful because of the additional interest that can be earned on the money saved in these accounts. The amount of interest earned depends on the amount of money in the account, how long it stays there and the standard savings interest rates offered by each bank. Not only do teenagers get to save small amounts of money occasionally, they will also be able make effective use of the money when it is needed. These instant access savings are readily accessible anytime of the day making it convenient to keep the money safe for future use.